


Change My Mind (Kenma Kozume)

by Lexii_Silva



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Anime, F/M, Haikyuu - Freeform, Haikyuu!! AU Week, Manga & Anime, Volleyball
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:56:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27184853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lexii_Silva/pseuds/Lexii_Silva
Summary: "Hey Areku, you wanna come watch this volleyball game?" "Nah, you know I don't really want anything to do with volleyball anymore?" He nudged me on the shoulder. "C'mon, who knows, maybe these guys will change your mind." He pressed on, I sighed. "I doubt it." I muttered out. "Never know if you don't try." He added. I looked down. "But that's up to you, I won't bother you with it anymore. See ya later, little sis." He walked away, waving behind at me. I looked on after him.
Relationships: Kozume Kenma & Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 8





	1. Watch Us Play

Chapter One *Watch Us Play*

* * *

I sighed looking out my window, I hate how long these last classes always are. They never cease to drag on and take it's time to get to the final point in the bell. The teacher was droning on about last weeks test and whoever didn't pass could make it up with a practice test on Friday. None of this applied to me, since I past the test. 

"Take these last 10 minutes of class and go over your notes." The teacher finished, and the class cheered happily.

Almost none of them would even bother looking over their notes and instead will goof off and talk to their friends. I leaned my head against me hand and watched as a few birds sat in a tree and communicated back and forth with each other. That's when I heard my phone vibrate from my backpack on the floor. _'_

 _Who would be texting me in the middle of class.'_ I thought to myself, I looked up and saw the teacher was on her own phone, rolling my eyes, I pulled out my own phone and saw a text from my older brother. 

'I know you already said 'no', but I'm asking one more time. Practice for them starts right after you get out of class.' I huffed out, _'He's lucky this time is free, I would've killed him if I gotten in trouble for this.'_

'I'm in the middle of class. I don't understand why you want me to watch these guys so much. You just started getting back into volleyball a few months ago when you started coaching their team.' I texted back to him, almost instantly I got another text back.

'You won't regret it, I can promise you that.' I stared at the screen of my phone, trying to figure out what he meant by this text. 

_'They're only high schoolers, why would they be any special, just because they're a little older. They're all the same.'_

But I couldn't stop this feeling inside of me, what if he's right. What if I won't regret it. I shook my head, almost shocked at myself for giving in to this. 

I turned my phone off, putting it back into my bag. 

I looked up at the clock on the wall, only a few more minutes left and then I'd be free of this classroom and I can finally get home and do something more productive. I heard another vibrate from my backpack. 

_'He texted me back again.'_

I reached in and pulled my phone back out. 'They may seem like a bunch of guys that don't looked like they belong, but I can promise you that they're different.' 

I stared at my screen. _'Different?'_

* * *

I grumbled to myself as I stood outside the gym to the boys volleyball team. Debating with myself if I should really go in or not. 

_'This seems like such a bad idea.'_ But I couldn't help this feeling of anticipation, of wanting to walk right into the gym like I've done it a hundred times. The only times I've actually set foot in this gym are for rallies or any special announcements, other then that, I've never needed to come back here.

I could hear the sounds of the volleyballs being hit around and the scraping of sneakers running across the floor. Then I started to hear faint voices of them yelling out different plays and cheers from them getting points. I felt myself clenched up. Do I really want to go there just because my brother's text? I sighed out frustrated. Even though I felt like I was trembling and I just wanted to turn away, my feet stayed firmly in place. I felt like I couldn't move at all. Then I hear.

"Hey, are you lost or something?" I nearly jumped out of my skin. I jumped, giving a little yelp of surprised. I turned around and saw one of the teachers walking towards me. "O-oh, umm, no I was just lost in thought." I muttered out. "Oh, did you want to go inside?" He asked, pointing to the gym behind me. I looked down. "I, um, I don't know." I mumbled to him. He rubbed the back of his head, clearly not knowing what to say next.

I took a breath. "My brother-" I started out, he looked over at me. I was unsure why I felt like I should tell him about my situation, but I kept going anyways. "My brother, he wanted me to check out the boys volleyball team." I said to him. He thought for a moment and then a look of realization came over him. "Oh wow, it's so nice to meet you." He said cheerfully. He grabbed my hand and started to shake it a bit violently. I looked at him blankly, very confused. 

He started to laugh a bit, "Oh sorry about that. Your brother was telling me about you, and how he was trying to convince you to come here. He had really big doubts that you would show up." I cringed. _'He even thought I wouldn't come.'_ "But I am glad to see you here. He's told me how much you love volleyball, but that you stopped playing because of something that happened, he didn't say what, but the look on his face when he talked about you." He stared off, I imagine thinking of the conversation he had with him. I continued to stare at him, he looked back and his face got slightly embarrassed. "I'm sorry, please don't tell him I told you that." He bowed in front of me. I smiled down at him. "Don't worry, I won't tell." I promised him.

He looked back up smiling at me. "Oh right, I'm the coach of the boys volleyball team." He held his hand out to me. I took it, shaking it. "I'm Areku Ukai, I'm a second year." I said to him. That's when the doors of the gym swung open and my brother stepped outside. "Hey Takeda, who are you-" He stopped when he saw me standing with him. 

"Well, look who showed up. I didn't think you'd come after ignoring my last text." He said in a teasing voice, but it didn't take away the please look in his eyes. "Believe me when I say I didn't want to come." I grumbled back to him, my shoulders dropping. "I'm glad you're here. The guys are just getting started. You should come in." He said walking back inside, I looked over at the coach and he smiled back at me as he walked into the gym. I looked ahead of me, and without even thinking my feet started taking me until I walked past the doors.

* * *

The doors slammed shut behind me and I took in everything around me. There were volleyballs everywhere on the floor and all the guys were running around practicing. Some were setting up for the spikers, there were ones practicing to receive and block different attacks, and then a couple of them were practicing their serves.

"Oh shit! Hey! Watch out!" I heard a panicked voice call out, I saw a stray ball coming right at me, and before I could even react, I dropped my arms, bringing them together, I hit the ball away from me. He flew off, bouncing off the ground a couple of times. I looked around and saw that everyone was looking over at me, shocked expressions on their faces.

I felt my face heat up, _'Damn, I came in there just trying to stay hidden and now they're all looking at me.'_ That's when this orange hair guy came up to me, he was a lot more shorter then I expected. "That was amazing! You just 'bam' that ball away from you without even thinking." His face was close to mines and his eyes almost looked like they were sparkling. 

I just stared back at him. "Umm, I-I guess." I stuttered. "I'm so sorry!" I jumped and looked over at this tall guy with a manbun bowing at me. "I didn't expect the ball to go that way. Are you hurt?" He looked up asking me. I gave a small smile to him. "No, I'm fine." I said to him. That's when another guy came up, he was a bit shorter then manbun, he had black short hair. "That was some amazing reflexes and control to hit that ball away from you. Are you from the girls volleyball team?" He asked me. That's when I noticed that all the guys were starting to crowd around me. I could feel myself starting to get more flustered. "U-um, no. I don't play volleyball anymore." I answered.

"But you're so good. Why wouldn't you continue to play?" These two guys yelled at me. He was just a little bit taller then the orange head, he had a buzzcut and the other one was just shorter then orange and he had his hair spiked up, it was all grey-ish black with a bit of blonde at the bottom. "I-umm, I just didn't want to play anymore." I said rubbing the back of my head. That's when my brother came over to us.

"Okay guys, stop crowding around her, you're clearly making her uncomfortable." He said to them. He all backed up a bit, all muttering an apology. Keishin came over to me putting a hand on my shoulder. "I would like you guys to meet my little sister, Areku Ukai." He introduced me to everyone. They all had shocked looked on their faces. "Oh coach, I didn't know you had a little sister." The orange haired one said jumping up. 

_'What's with all that energy?'_ "Yes, I've actually been asking her to come by here and watch you guys play. Areku was a very good volleyball player, she played all throughout her elementary and middle school, although in her first year of high school, at a different school, she decided to stop playing and transferred here." He explained to them all. I glared over at him. _'Thanks for telling them my whole life story, what else are you going to add?'_ He smirked back at me clearly not done.

"She actually played on the boys volleyball team at her old school, as the ace." That seemed to switch up the energy of all the guys in the room. They all looked at me. "You played on the boys team as the ace, you must be really good!" The orange haired one said with the same sparkle in his eyes. "That is incredible, why would you want to leave that?" A soft spoken, grey-ish haired guy asked, I noticed he had a small freckle right under his left eye. "I just- I could've find any good reason to stay, really." I muttered out to them. 

I looked over at my brother and he could see I was struggling. "Well anyway, Areku." He called over to me. "This is Daichi Sawamura, he's the captain of our team and a great defense. Koshi Sugawara, out sub setter. Asahi Azumane, our wing spiker and ace of the team. Yu Nishinoya, our Libero. Ryunosuke Tanaka, Chikara Ennoshita, Hisashi Kinoshita, our other wing spikers. Kazuhito Narita, Kei Tsukishima our middle blockers, Tobio Kageyama, our main setter. Tadashi Yamaguchi our pinch server, and Shoyo Hinata, our decoy." He introduced me to all the guys. They all bowed. "Welcome!" They said in unison. I bowed back to them "Thank you, it's nice to meet you guys." I said happily to them. 

Nishinoya slid up to me, pointing to himself with a confident look on his face. "But you can call me Noya." He said. I smiled at him. "Okay, Noya." He crossed his arms before saying. "You know, I think that the two of us should-" He was cut off by my brother throwing a volleyball at the back of his head. "Back to practice now." He growled at him. "Yes, coach." He grumbled, rubbing the back of his head. Sugawara chuckled at him as Tanaka started making jokes to him. "Shut down by the coach, that's gotta hurt." "Shut up!" Noya yelled at him.

* * *

"Areku." I looked over at my brother. "This is Kiyoko Shimizu and Hitoka Yachi the managers of the team." I bowed. "It's nice to meet you two." I looked over Hitoka Yachi. "Aren't we in the same mathematics class?" I asked her. She froze, a look of recognition on her face. She bowed low. "You're right! Sorry I didn't notice before!" She apologized to me. "I-It's alright." I said to her. 

I sat with my brother, the other coach, and the two managers. All the guys were working hard, each of them practicing on their weaknesses. "They're really determined." I said. "Yeah, they'll all want to win and they've all been practicing to get better." My brother said. I looked up at him. "That's kinda why I kept asking you to come here. I was hoping they'd convince you to come back." I opened my mouth to say something but he cut me off. "I know how you feel about playing again, but I'm not asking you to come and play, I'm asking you to come here and help to teach." My eyes widen as I looked at my brother. He had a serious look on his face, I search his face but nothing gave any hint that he was joking. He was completely serious. 

I sighed and looked down at my hands. I clenched my mouth. "I don't know Keishin. Do I even have anything that they can use to help them improve?" I asked him. "Are you joking?" He said, I jumped and looked back at him. "Areku, you made volleyball you sport and home. I know there are a bunch of tricks up your sleeve that could help this team, and a lot of input that could encourage this team." He said, he was standing over me now. 

He sighed, "You don't have to decide today, take your time, come back to a few more of these practices. But please, don't deny it just yet. Give it a chance to sit with you." He begged to me. I nodded. "Alright, I'll think it over." I said to him. He smiled at me, then roughly rubbed the top of my head. "Oww!!" I yelped out. "Who's my favorite sister?" He cooed to me. I felt my eye twitch, pushing his hand away. "I'm your only sister." I yelled at him. 

My brother stood up, clapping his hands together loudly, catching the guys attention. "Wrap it up for the night!" He yelled out to them. "Yes coach!" They called back to him. They all started to take down the net and collecting all the volleyballs spread around the gym. They grabbed the mops and started to sweep up the floor. Then they all gathered around.

"You guys did great today, you're improving at an amazing speed, and I know you guys will continue to get better. There are still some things we are going to continue to work. But as of right now, you guys get home and rest up and I'll see you tomorrow for practice again." I looked up at my brother amazed, it's so weird to see how my brother is coaching this team. He looks so in his element. It's been a while since I've seen that. "By the way, next week we'll be having a practice game again, against Nekoma. It'll be on a Saturday, so we'll report to the school and take the bus to their school." 

Nekoma? I remember grandpa telling me stories about that school when he coached at this school. All the guys started to get excited. "Yes! Another practice match against them." Hinata said excitedly. "I can't wait to crush those guys into the ground." Tanaka yelled. I couldn't help but laugh at their enthusiasm. They all seemed so happy. "Areku, will you be joining us at that game?" Sugawara asked me. They all turned to look at me. I looked over at my brother, all he offered was a smile. "Yeah, I'll be there to watch you guys." I answered. They all cheered. Then they all started to head back into the locker rooms to change out of their volleyball clothes. 

I walked and waited outside, the sun was long gone and the sky was filled with bright stars and a huge shiny moon. "You almost looked like your old self back there." My brother said from the side of me. "I can't lie and say it didn't feel good to hit that ball away from me." I admitted to him. "I think this team can really get far with your help." He said. I didn't say anything back to him and we continued to stare up at the sky. "Hey! What are you two staring at?" I looked behind me and saw Noya calling out to us. 

"Nothing, we're coming!" My brother said to him, he started to walk back to them. 

I started to walk but stopped, it's weird, I only just met this team today and they didn't even play a game. But it already felt like I belonged, like I was meant to be here. "Areku, what're you spacing out about?" Tanaka called out. I looked up and saw them waiting for me. "S-sorry, I'm coming." I said and run up to meet them on the path and we all started on our way home.

* * *


	2. Don't You Miss It?

Chapter Two *Don't You Miss It?*

* * *

I yawned as I walked through the halls of Karasuno. _'I should've used those 10 minutes to go over my notes in class, instead of texting on my phone.'_ I looked over and saw some Tanaka and Noya from the volleyball team walking together, talking. That's when Noya looked over and saw me, a smile spread across his face and he came bolting at me. "Areku, what an amazing way to start the day." He said happily.

"Good morning, Noya. Morning to you too, Tanaka." I said to them. "I would have to agree, it is a good morning." Tanaka said, they both had a weird glint in their eyes. That's when a hand reached out and hit them both on the back of the head. "Would you two knock it off." Sugawara said scolding them. They both groaned and rubbed the back of their heads. Sawamura and Azumane came up chuckling to themselves. "At least it was only Suga and not coach this time." Sawamura said to them. They both turned sending glares at Sugawara. "Good morning you guys, did you sleep well?" I asked them. "Yes, thank you for asking." Sugawara said giving me a smile.

Azumane nodded at my question, "What did you think of our team?" Sawamura asked. "I think you guys are an amazing team with a lot of spirit." I chuckled at the last part. Thinking of how free-spirited Hinata is. "But, I do notice the little things that you guys do need to work on, but I'm sure you'll be able to overcome it." I said. Sawamura nodded. "I appreciate the honesty." He said rubbing the back of his head. 

That's when the first bell rang. "Oh, we better get going so we're not late. See you guys around." Azumane said. Sugawara and Sawamura nodded. They both turned, waving at us. "Bye now." Sugawara said. "See ya later." Sawamura added. We waved after them. 

Tanaka, Noya, and I all started walking through the halls. "What classes do you guys have?" I asked them. "Oh we're in some of the same classes together. What about you Areku?" Noya asked. "I have mostly collage prep classes." I answered to him. He flinched and looked a little shot down. Noya mumbled something to himself. "Mhm?" I asked. He jumped, his face looking a little flushed. "N-nothing. Well we better head off to our class, see you later Areku." Noya said. "Yea! See you at the gym later." Tanaka added. I waved after them and watched them walk down the hall. 

I looked inside my first class of the day. _'At the gym later. They already treat me like I'm apart of their team'_ I felt something weird in my chest, almost like a longing and I smiled a bit. Maybe this won't be so bad after-all

* * *

I leaned back against my chair, I always hated my English literature class. It seems to drag on the longest before the lunch bell. My stomach growled a bit, as I patted it down. I took my backpack and decided I would go eat outside for today, and this way I'll be able to grab a juice box from the vending machine outside. 

I found a bench a good distance away from the machine and it was nicely blocked from the sun by a nearby tree. That's when I saw Kageyama looking like he's struggling over at the vending machine. _'Is he really having that hard of a time picking something?'_ I walked over to him and he seemed not to have noticed me yet. 

"Having trouble?" I asked, he jumped screaming a bit. I yelped back, a bit surprised. "What the hell? You shouldn't sneak up on people." He yelled crossing his arms. I knitted my eye brows together. "I just walked up to you, you looked like you were struggling." I said to him. He cringed. "I-I'm not struggling." He stuttered. I snickered. "Right." I said to him. He huffed and pressed one of the buttons. 

He walked over to the bench I was looking at and took a seat. I made my selection at the vending machine and joined him on the bench. I started to unwrap my bento box and started to eat at my rice. That's when I noticed he didn't have anything with him. 

"You're not eating?" I asked him. "Oh, I already ate when I was in my classroom earlier." He said. "Oh." I muttered back. I could feel the awkward tension starting to grow. _'What do I do to keep this awkwardness away? He doesn't seem like the talking type.'_

"Don't you miss it?" He asked suddenly. His question took me by surprise. I sighed looking down, putting my bento box onto my lap. "Yeah, I miss it almost everyday." I said to him. "Then-then why did you give it up?" He asked. I looked at his face, he looked genuinely confused. "It's just, I do have my reasons for not wanting to play anymore. I just can't do it." I said to him. 

I noticed that his fist clenched together. Judging from his character, he doesn't seem like the type that does well with controlling his emotions. "But that just seems like bullshit, if you love the game, there shouldn't be any reason to stop playing." He said loudly. I could see he was struggling, like he wanted to understand. I frowned a bit, the backs of my eyes started to stink a bit. 

"If I could play again, I would, but when I say I have reasons. I really do have reasons." I said. I stood up. "It's almost the end of lunch, we should head back before the bell rings." I said to him, I started to walk away when he said. "Are you going to be joining coach Ukai and Coach Takeda as our new coach too?" He asked. I looked back at him and he seemed to have a kind of hopeful look on his face.

I know that, my use to being an ace surprised them, and they want to know more about it. But I'm still unsure about my answer to my brother's question. "I don't know yet. I haven't decided." I answered. He stood up and we both started walking back inside the building. "Even though you can't play the sport anymore, don't you think it would be better then nothing to be a coach, at least you'll still be apart of the team?" He asked. 

_'What's with this guy and asking so many of these questions.'_ Before I could answer him, the first bell rang signaling that lunch is almost over. "Oh there's the bell. See you around." Kageyama said and walked in the other direction towards his class. "Y-yea, see you." I said. 

* * *

_'...it would be better then nothing to be a coach, at least you'll still be apart of the team...'_ Ever since the confrontation from Kageyama it's all I could think about. He seems like a pretty decently smart guy. At least he seems to be questioning the right questions. He definitely knows how to push certain buttons. I sighed. "Oh sorry Miss Ukai, is my class boring you." The teacher glared at me. "S-sorry ma'am, no ma'am." I said embarrassed. I heard the class snicker around me. That's when I felt a hand touch my back, I flinched a bit. I turned and saw Yachi sitting behind me, she gave me a small smile. 

_'I hope this class goes by fast.'_ "Okay, now take this time and discuss the questions in your textbook with your classmates around you." The teacher said. I turned and face Yachi. "You okay Areku?" She asked me. "Yeah, just had a lot on my mind." I said. I laid my head on her desk. "I'm sure it'll be okay." She said in a shaky voice. I lifted my head and smiled at her. "Yea, you're right." I said trying to push the thoughts away from my mind. 

* * *

I was sitting in my last class, tapping my pencil against my desk. The teacher droned on as she wrote a few notes on the board behind her. _'Why can't time just go by faster?'_ I wanted to groan but after what happened in my class earlier, I didn't want another teacher to call me out. "Now remember we have a test this next Friday, I expect you all will go well on your test. But there are always other ways to make up if you fail." I could hear a chorus of didn't groans and sighs from some of the students. "Areku, would you please remain behind after the bell rings." I jumped a bit as she said my name. I could hear a few snickers and some of the other students whisper. "Un- yes ma'am." I stumbled on my words. I laid my head down into my arms, burying my face. _'Man, and when I thought I was in the clear.'_ I looked up at the teacher as she sat at her desk and started looking over some homework we past in at the beginning of class. I wondered what she could want with me?

The bell went off shortly after, some students cheered as they packed up their backpacks and quickly exited the room. I slowly put my notebook and textbook away and walked up to her desk. "I've noticed that you've seen to be spacing out in class. I wanted to know if there was something bothering you?" I looked at her shocked. _'Bothering me?'_ "Um, n-no ma'am. I've just learnt these things before at my old school." I explained to her. She nodded, closing her eyes. "You're a very bright student with a lot going for you. I would hate to see any of that get wasted." She went on. "I was reading over some of your old charts from your freshman year at Reitaku high school." I knew what was coming next from her. My old charts will say how I was more cheery, more energetic, more lively. I sighed. I know I'm none of those now. I'm more shy, timid, spacey.

"If you ever feel like you need to talk about what happened at your old school. There are teachers and the guidance counselor would be happy to me, as would I." She must've caught on to the look on my face. I looked down. "I understand, thank you for your concern. But I'm fine the way I am now." I said to her. She sighed. "Okay, you're free to leave now." I nodded and made my way out of the classroom. "I hope you don't blame yourself for what happened to yourself at Reitaku." She called after me. I stood frozen in the doorway. _'She knows? Did they put that on my chart too? But why, it has nothing to do with this school now.'_ I didn't bother to say anything to her after that. I almost ran out of the classroom. I stared down at the floor as I walked-ran throughout the halls, I was moving around aimlessly. 

That's when I collided with something in front of me. "Oww." I groaned out, as I fell to the ground. I looked up and realized it was a someone, and not a something. Tsukishima. _'Oh great, out of all the people to run into. It had to be the emotionless one.'_ "Watch where you're going." He glared down at me. "S-sorry." I apologized and stood up. My head was still a bit hazy. "What's got you in such a rush-y mood, it can't be that you don't want to be late to the club?" He asked in a sarcastic tone. I frowned at him. "You make it sound like it doesn't matter to you." I shot back to him. "It doesn't." He said bluntly. "Then why be apart of it?" I asked him. "I don't have to answer to you." He said walking past me. I watched as he walked down the hall. _'What a weird guy.'_

After my encounter with Tsukishima I started making my way towards the gym. I walked into the locker room first, and changed into a tracksuit and some better shoes, at least I'd look like I belonged more better. I walked into the gym and saw they were already practicing. They had started a mock game with each other. I walked over to my brother, Shimizu, and Yachi. "Hello." I said. "Oh Areku, thought for a second you wouldn't show up." My brother said jokingly. I laughed a bit. "I got stopped by my teacher on the way out." I explained to him. "Where's Mister Takeda?" I asked looking around. "Oh, he's in his office. I think he's got a few calls to take care of?" My brother said. 

A few minutes later Tsukishima walked into the gym. "Tsukishima, go join over on Sawamura's team." My brother called out to him. He stared blankly at him and walked over to their team. "I don't understand why he even bothers." I grumbled. "It's true he doesn't have too much spirit." Yachi said. "I mean, you can tell he likes the game, but there's just something holding him back." I said. "Really you think so?" She asked. "Well, it's the only thing I can think of, why else would he be there?" I asked her. She shrugged and then nodded her head. "It makes sense." Yachi agreed. 

I stared off at the team, they did seem to have such a nice form. But I just couldn't help wondering, something just felt off. I scrunched up my face a bit. "I know that look, it's your thinking face." I looked over at my brother. "Or you're just constipated." I glared at him, as the girls laughed. "Not funny." I growled at him. "But seriously, what's up?" He asked. I sighed. "They're form, it seems off." I said. He looked over at them. "What do you mean?" He asked. "Just that, they all seem so confused and they're watching each other closely. Like they want to make sure they can go for a receive or spike." I explained. My brother looked over. "I don't know, they just seem so unsure of themselves." I said. My brother frowned a bit. "I get what you're saying, they work good with each other. But they're still working on the trusting aspect. They'll get there, I know they will." I could see the confident, determined look on his face. Then he chuckled and looked back over at me. "Look at my sister starting to get her volleyball colors back." I cringed a bit. "I doubt that. I-it's not hard to miss." I stuttered a bit. "If you say so." I looked over and saw he had a smug. I hit him in the arm. "Oww! Hey! That hurt!" He glared at me, grabbing his arm. "Don't be looking all smug over there." I said. I said giving him a smug look back. "If anyone is looking smug, it's you." He grumbled.

* * *

The guys did a few more mock games, but man though, Hinata just wanted to keep going. I helped the girls pass out a few bottles to the guys. I handed one to Sugawara. "Thank you." He said giving me a smile. "No problem." I smiled back to him. "C'mon, one more game." Hinata said pumping his arms up in the air. "Does he ever get tired?" I asked amazed looking at him. Azumane laughed from behind me. "That'll be the day. I swear he runs on batteries." He joked. 

That's when Mister Takeda came into the gym with a big smile on his face. "What's got you all rallied up?" Keishin asked him. "I'm happy to announce in two months from now we'll be joining the other schools in a practice training camp!" He said excitedly. All the guys started to cheer and freak out, they all looked so pumped about it. "Oh wow, that's amazing." Keishin said. "Yeah, I was on the phone with coach Naoi and he was able to get us in." "Oh wow, I didn't know Naoi still coached over there." I said surprised. "Oh yea, although I think he'll be retiring soon." I laughed a bit. "Grandpa must hate that he had to retire before him." I said. 

"Anyway, we'll be there for a total of one month to practice with the teams there." Takeda explained. "What other teams will be there?" Hinata asked. Takeda rubbed his head embarrassed. "I'm not sure yet. Mister Naoi was still rounding up a few more schools." He explained. "It doesn't matter how many of them there are, we'll crush them all!" Tanaka exclaimed, pumping his fist into the air. Noya was jumping around behind him, "Whoo!!" He yelled out. 

"Well until we get to the practice training camp, we'll continue to work on our moves here and improve to show those other schools we mean business." Keishin said to them. They all gathered around. "Right!" They shouted in unison. "Now, let's clean up and head out for the night." He said. 

I went over and started to collect some of the stray balls that were scattered around the gym. I looked over at Kageyama, out conversation still hung over my head from lunch earlier. Although what my teacher said too, wasn't helping the situation much either. I walked over to him. "Hey, Kageyama. Do you have a minute to talk?" I asked him. He looked at my confused. "Uh, sure." He said.

We walked outside, I didn't want to make too much of a scene with all the guys around. He stood there looking down at me, waiting for me to start. "I've been thinking about what we talked about during lunch." I started. He seemed surprised that I was bringing this back up to him. "I know you must not understand why I don't want to play." I struggled trying to think of what to say next. I looked away from him. _'Man, this is way harder then I thought it would be.'_ I sighed. "You don't have to explain yourself to me." I looked up at Kageyama, this time it was my turn to be surprised. "I shouldn't have asked you such a difficult question. I overstepped my boundaries. I'm sorry." He bowed down in front of me. I can say, I wasn't expecting that. 

"It-it's fine." I said giving him a small smile. "Although I will say, that did catch me off guard. You don't seem like the type of person to be sorry about that kind of thing." I noticed his face twitch a bit. I think I might've offended him. "Hey! I will have you know that I can be a compassionate person." He crossed his arms looking away. "Right." I said not believing him. "Anyway, it doesn't change the fact of what I wanted to talk to you about." I said. It seemed to catch his attention again. "I don't want to play volleyball anymore, because I'm afraid too." I said to him. "Afraid? Why?" He asked. "At my last school, something happened, it took away everything the game originally meant to me. I just don't want to relive that. So I chose not to play." I looked down. I could feel a lump starting to form in the back of my throat and my eyes were starting to sting a bit. 

"But it's different now, you're not at that school anymore. Are you really going to let them control your life like that?" He asked. I looked up at him. His face seemed to change a bit. He looked almost determined like. I sighed. "Maybe one day, but it's not going to be anytime soon." I said.

* * *

After our intense conversation outside we returned to the gym and continued to help everyone clean up the rest that was left. "Look like a really intense conversation you two were having outside?" Keishin stopped me. "You were watching?" I asked embarrassed. "Well, of course, you think I'm going to let my little sister be alone with a guy." I rolled my eyes at him. "While I appreciate your concern. That's not going to happen." I crossed my arms. "I mean if you like him, there's noth-" "I don't like him!" I cut him off, my face turning red. He started to laugh at me. "I'm only teasing you. But seriously, is everything okay?" He asked a serious look on his face. "Yeah, we were just finishing a conversation we had earlier today. He asked me why I don't play volleyball anymore." I said. Keishin looked surprised at me. "And you told him the truth." I flinched. "No." I muttered, 

"You know the guys here, they won't judge you for what happened." He said. I sighed. "I just can't do that. I don't want to risk anything, not anymore." I said sadly. My brother sighed. "Life is all about risk, can you really say you lived if you don't risk it all." I looked over at me. He had a look of triumph on his face. "You look weird when you try to talk all philosophical." He twitched a bit. "Well, excuse me, for trying to help you." He crossed his arms. "I'm just not ready to tell them." I said. "I barely know them." I added with a slight huff. 

"Give it time, I'm sure, soon enough. They'll feel like family." 

We finished up our cleaning and started to walk home. My brother takes a different route then me, normally I don't stay too late at the school, and I would take a nearby bus. But now I have to walk, luckily I'm able to walk with Kageyama, and Hinata. "Thank you for walking me home again guys." I said to them. "It's no problem at all." Hinata said happily. "Yeah, better then having to walk by yourself." Kageyama added. 

I waved them as they continued on their way back to their homes. I walked into my house taking off my shoes. "I'm home!" I called out. "Okay, I'm in the kitchen." I heard my mother call out to me. I walked in and saw her washing the dishes. "I have your dinner waiting for you in the oven. How was practice?" She asked. I walked over to the oven and pulled out the plate. "It was alright, like any other practice. Oh but there's this training camp that's coming up in a couple of months." I said to her. I walked over to the table and pulled the aluminum foil off the top to revealed a nicely cooked steak with some mashed potatoes and peas. 

"Oh, that sounds like fun. I'm so happy that you've decided to finally get back into volleyball again. I know how happy you used to be when you played." She exclaimed happily. "You know I don't actually play the game right?" I asked her, raising my eye brow. "I know, dear. But it just makes me happy knowing what happened at Reitaku isn't stopping you. That you're still the same even what happened." Her answer took me by surprised. I looked over at my mother and noticed that her face seemed more calmer today, and she looked more happier. _'Did what happen to me, affect her just as much? How had I never noticed before?'_

"Yeah mom, it does feel good to be back there." 


	3. Trip Down Memory Lane

Chapter Three *Trip Down Memory Lane*

* * *

I turned over in my bed and looked at the clock on my night stand. 5:43. Today is the day they we're going to do a practice match against Nekoma.

_'This sucks, I wished my body would allow me to sleep more.'_

I sighed as I rolled over to face the wall, I've been feeling all nervous about going to Nekoma. I haven't seen a volleyball match since I stopped playing, even if it's only just a practice one too. I know they'll treat it like it's a real game and want to win; and if Nekoma is anything like how it was back then, they'll be wanting to win just as much. 

I grumbled to myself and pushed the covers off of me, it doesn't seem like I'll be going back to sleep anymore. I decided to start getting ready, at least I won't have to rush out of here. I grabbed my school uniform I had folded on my desk chair and walked down the hall to my bathroom. I started my shower; I walked over to my sink and looked at myself in the mirror. I scrunched my face up, blowing my cheeks out. I snickered at myself before turning my attention to brushing my teeth. 

* * *

After my shower and getting dressed I walked down to the kitchen to have something to eat before school. _I probably won't cook anything, I'll just have like a bowl of cereal or something.'_ As I carried my bowl back to my room, I decided to check and make sure I have everything. That's when I ping came from my phone. _'A text?'_

'Hey, make sure you bring your old volleyball suit. We actually don't have an extra one :/.' I looked over at the text my brother sent me. _'When did he learn to use emoticons? Who taught him that?'_ I shook my head and replied back to him. 'Okay, I'll bring it with me to school.' I put my phone down and finished up my cereal putting the bowl on my desk. I walked over to my dresser and started looking around in the draws for my old track suit. Ever since I stopped playing, I basically abandoned it. I figured I'd never use it again. 

_'Damn, I'm really going to be looking for this thing until I run late to school.'_ I had looked over all my draws about three times and can't seem to find it anywhere. I scratched my head confused. "I haven't used that uniform for almost over a year. Where in the world could it have gone?" I sighed frustrated. I looked over at my clock 6:37. At least I still have some time. I grumbled to myself and collapsed onto my bed. That's when I heard a soft knocking coming from my door. "Areku, are you alright? I could hear a lot of noises coming from your room?" She called through the door. I got up and opened it. Her eyes still looked drowsy, she had her bathrobe tied tightly around her, and her hair was done up in a messy bun; although it was basically falling apart now with pieces of hair sticking up everywhere. 

"Sorry mom. I'm trying to find my old volleyball uniform. I need it for the practice match today." I told her. She turned, having her thinking face on. "Oh, I moved it out of your room. I put it in the storage room with all your other volleyball gear and things. I figured after what happened you wouldn't want to have it near you. I couldn't bear if you had the impulse to throw it away." She said looking down sadly. I grabbed her my her arms and pulled her into a big hug. She froze for a second before returning the hug. "Thanks mom, you're a life saver." I said and ran down the hall to the small storage room we had. It use to be my brother's room when he lived here, but ever since he moved out mom turned it into a room to put everything into. 

I opened the door and saw boxes piled high on top of each other. _'Now which box would she put it in?'_ Out of the corner of my eye I saw a few of my old volleyball plaques laying on the floor. I was hesitant to move at first, it's been so long since I've seen any of them. I was almost afraid to even look at them, but it was like my body was moving on it's own. Before I knew it, I was crouching down and pulled the first plaque into view. 

Fukuoka Elementary School

Volleyball Girls Team

Best Libero:

Areku Ukai

I paused as I looked over the plaque. It was the very first one I got when I joined the girls volleyball team at my elementary school. There was a picture of me at the bottom. I was holding onto a small trophy we had gotten from winning a mini tournament in the area. Soon after the tournament most of the girls didn't want to play volleyball anymore and the girls team was shut down. But that didn't stop me, at the time, I begged and begged my mom to let me play on the boys team until she went to the school and told them about it. At first they didn't think it was right for a girl to play, but after I promised them they wouldn't regret it, they let me. I think they only did it because of the fact it was just an elementary school. But after we won a few more matches an another few tournaments did they realize I was serious. After that I only played on boys teams. 

I started pulling out my other awards looking at all of them. Best Setter. Best Receiver. Best Server. Best Blocker. Best Spiker. Best Captain. Best Ace. I wanted to be the best in everything in that sport. I knew because I was a girl I had to work extra harder. So I stayed after school everyday even on the weekends. I trained at home, I played with my brother and grandfather. I played with the neighborhood kids. I did until I was able to get to where I was back then. But it was all for nothing. All that hard work, it all went down the drain. 

I sighed as I let the medal I was holding in my hand fall to the ground. "You know it doesn't have to be over." I jumped at the sound of my mother's voice. "But after everything I went through, everything I did. It was all for nothing." I sniffed a bit. I didn't even realize I was crying until I tried talking. The tears started falling freely down my face. "Oh honey." My mom came over and threw her arms around me, I sat there and cried into her shoulder. She rubbed my back and soothed down my hair. "Just because of what happened at your old school, doesn't mean it'll happen at Karasuno." She whispered in my ear. I sniffled again and wiped the tears from my face. "I'm not ready for that. I can't just pretend it never happened." I hiccupped. "You don't have to pretend it never happened. But don't let it knock you down. That only means they won, and you're stronger than that. You can get right back up and fight again." I looked at my mom stunned. I had never seen her look so serious, she never spoke like this to me after what happened. She'd always seemed so afraid to bring it up.

We stood there for a few moments just staring back and forth at each other. 

* * *

"I can't believe it was hidden under all those boxes. My back is killing me." I muttered in pain. "Oh, do you need an ice pack or anything?" My mom asked worried. "Nah, I think I should be fine. I'll just take a pill before I leave." I said to her. "Alright, are you sure?" I nodded. "Yes, mom." I smiled at her and she smiled back. 

Uniform in hand I walked back to my room and folded it up, placing it in my old volleyball gym bag, along with a few other things just in case. Never know what you'll need at a different school. I sighed. I couldn't get what my mom said out of my head. _'You can get right back up and fight again.'_ Can it really be all that simple? Maybe in other cases, but I'm not quite sure in mines. I growled frustrated. _'This is so hard.'_ It was like being in a mental battle, like having the devil and the angel sitting on my shoulders trying to tell me what would be the better option. I pushed the thoughts away and sat on my bed. 7:45. Almost time to leave for school. 

Once I get to school, I'll have to drop my gym bag off at my locker so I don't drag it around with me all day.

I walked back into the bathroom just to take the small pill to try and numb the pain in my back and I looked at myself in the mirror again. My eyes were still a little scratchy from the crying. But the redness was gone and my face wasn't as puffy anymore. At least none of the guys or my brother will be able to notice it. 

I grabbed my backpack putting it on and then swung my gym bag around my body to make it easier to carry. "Are you sure you'll be alright carrying all that to school?" My mom asked worried. I sighed, giving her a smile. "I'll be fine mom, weren't you the one just a little while ago saying to keep on fighting?" I teased her. She rolled her eyes. "Doesn't mean I won't still be worried and nervous about you." She said, rubbing the top of my head. "Ahh, I'm not a child anymore mom." I said embarrassed. She chuckled. "Well, you're still my child." She said. 

She walked me to the door, "Have a good day at school and during your practice match." She called to me as I walked down the path. "Thank you, have a good day too." I called back as I quickly rushed down the street. I wanted to make sure I made it to school at a decent time, so I'll have time to drop this off.

* * *

As I was making it down towards the path to the school, I past by my the family store. I stopped in front of it. _'I wonder if he's in yet?'_ I walked through the door. "Good mor- oh it's just you." His tone changed from cheerful to completely different more tired one. "That's not good customer service." I glared at him. "It's not like you can complain to anyone and get me in trouble." He said folding his arms behind his head, leaning back in his chair. "Yeah right, I'll tell mom on you." I teased. He snickered. "Go for it, I doubt she'd believe you." He said. 

I noticed his eyes scan down to my old gym bag. "I didn't know you still had that." He said surprised. "Neither did I, can you believe mom hoarded all my old volleyball stuff in your old room." I tried to chuckle so my voice didn't crack. "I can. Knowing you, you'd probably would've thrown it all out." He said. "Mom said the same thing." I laughed. "Well it's true, and even though I know you had every right to feel that way then. I know you would've regretted it in the future." He said. "How do you know that?" I challenged him. He smiled at me. "Well, you're back on a volleyball team." He said giving me a look. I rolled my eyes. "I'm not playing in it." I said. I shook my head. "I gotten get to school, so I can drop this off. I'll see you afterwards." I said and hurried out of the shop.

But not before I caught my brother saying, "At least not yet." I almost paused and turned back around to him, but I didn't want to face that right now. So I just continued down the road until the school came into view. 


	4. Nekoma High School

Chapter Four *Nekoma High School*

* * *

After my last class finally let out, I started heading to the gym. When I felt my phone starting to vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw it was from my grandfather. "Hello?" I answered. "Well if it isn't my favorite granddaughter." I rolled my eyes. "I swear you and Keishin have the same brain." I muttered. He gave a hearty laugh through the phone. "I'm only messing with you." He said. "Oh, so I'm not your favorite granddaughter." I teased him back. "Touché, kid." He said. "What's up grandpa?" I asked him. "I heard you're on a volleyball team again." I sighed. "Not really, my brother asked me to check out the team he's coaching, to give them a few pointers from when I used to play." I explained to him. "But you're still apart of it right?" He asked. I felt my eye twitch. _'I hate when he's right.'_ I shook my head. "Yea, I-I guess." I stuttered. I heard from yell through the phone. "Geez Gramps, relax you're going to blow my eardrums off!" I yelled through the phone. "I'm just so happy you're finally coming back to your roots." He said. "I don't play though. I just kind of coach." "It's better then nothing. I know you'll make it back home soon." He said. I didn't answer back. I felt my grip on my phone tighten a bit. "Well I'll let you go kid, I heard you have a practice match again today. Have fun." He said. "Yea, okay. Bye Gramps." I said.

I hung up the phone and sighed. "Look like one really intense conversation." I jumped, giving a little yelp. I turned around and saw Sugawara standing behind me. "Where did you come from?" I asked looking around. He laughed a bit. "I'm sorry. I thought you knew I was here." He apologized, still snickering. "My grandfather is always intense." I laughed. "Yeah, especially when he used to coach here too." I nodded agreeing with him.

"Are you excited for the practice match today?" I asked him, changing the subject. "Yea, we've gone against Nekoma before. They have a really amazing team and they're setter is pretty good too." He said. "Oh really, just as good as you?" I asked him jokingly. "He's like half and half. He's a good setter, but he doesn't really have any enthusiasm." Sugawara said. "He can really throw off a team when he wants too." He continued. "He sounds kind of boring." I said. "Why be on a team if he doesn't really like it?" I asked. "I mean there's Tsukishima." Sugawara pointed out. "True, although, I think deep down Tsukishima really does like the game. He just needs to apply himself more." I said. 

We're the last two to show up at the court. "There you two are, we were wondering where you might be." Sawamura said as we walked through the door. "Sorry, I had a phone call to take." I said rubbing the back of my head. "And he scared the hell out of me." I added pointing to Sugawara. Before anyone else could say anything Keishin said, "We'll be leaving in about 10 minutes, so lets get the bus all loaded up." "Right." We all said and got to work getting ready.

* * *

I watched out the window as we traveled to the district Nekoma is. "Are you excited Areku?" I looked over and saw Hinata hanging over the top of his seat. "Huh?" I asked confused. "This is going to be your first game in a long time right?" He asked. "It's not a real game." I heard Kageyama correct Hinata. I laughed a bit as Hinata glared down at him. "Shut up, it's kind of like a real game." He said. "So are you?" He turned his attention back to me. "A little bit." I admitted to him. A smile spread across his face. "Who knows, maybe you could even-" But Hinata was cut off as Mister Takeda slammed on the breaks. Hinata went flying backwards. "Ahh!" He yelled as he flew. I jumped up looking over the seat. "Hinata, are you alright?" I asked. He was squeezed between his seat and the bottom of the seat in front of him. I overheard Tsukishima and Yamaguchi trying to suppress a laugh. "Yeah, I'm okay." He said getting back up. "Sit right in your seats!" I heard my brother yell from the front of the bus. 

After that Hinata didn't try and look back over his seat again. _'_

_Knowing my brother, he'd probably have Hinata sit out all game. That would be enough punishment for him.'_

I continued to look out the window and watched everything pass by. That's when I felt someone watching me, I turned my head slowly around to see Ennoshita staring intently at me. _'Why do I feel so uncomfortable?'_ I haven't really talked to him before, so this felt a little weird. "Di-did you need something Ennoshita?" I asked him slowly. He cringed a bit. "Oh, s-sorry for staring. I guess I got lost in thought and forgot what I was looking at." He apologized, rubbing the back of his head. He seemed really embarrassed now. "It's fine." I chuckled a bit. "But I am curious about something." He said. "Mhm?" I looked over at him. "It was something Hinata was going to say, it got me thinking of something." He said looking away, he looked kind of conflicted to ask. "What's up?" I asked him. "Do-do you think you'd ever consider showing us how you use to play?" He stuttered. 

My eyes got wide, I paused, kind of frozen for a bit. To be honest, I was surprised he had asked that. It should have occurred to me, since what my brother told them, they'd probably want to see some moves and things like that. "I-I mean, s-sorry I shouldn't have asked." He apologized, bowing low to the seat. "It's just, I've never heard of a girl playing on the boys volleyball team and being the ace too. It's incredible. You had to train harder and work your way to reach the top like that. Won't you teach us to play like that? To work harder?" I was taken aback by his request. He had such a serious look on his face, his fist clenched in front of him. I stared back at him, I didn't know what to say. I looked down, turning my hand into a fist; my knuckles turning white. "I'm not sure." I blew out slowly. "Trying to demonstrate those old moves and what I used to do. It makes me nervous, I haven't hit a volleyball in a long time. The first time I touched a ball like that was when that ball came at me the first day at the gym." I said looking over at him.

"And did you see how you blocked that ball without even thinking. Like your body just taking over and you blocked it." He said back to me. "You still have it in you." He added. He gave me a smile before turning back and putting some headphones on. I turned and looked back out the window. 

* * *

We finally made it to Nekoma High School. "Areku, come over here!" I heard my brother call for me. I walked around the bus and saw him standing with two older men. They were the coaches for the Nekoma team. "Well look at this, you've grown up a lot Areku. How's your grandfather doing?" Nekomata asked. "He's good, doing his own thing nowadays." I smiled at him. "How's your volleyball team going? I'm surprised to see you here with Karasuno." He asked curious. I flinched a bit. "I-I don't play volleyball anymore." I said looking down. "I'm sorry to hear that. You're a very talented girl. You'll go far with that." He said. I looked up and painted on a fake smile. "Y-yea. I-I'll think about it." I stuttered. 

My brother noticing my struggle said, "Why don't you go and see if the guys need any help." I nodded. "Alright Keishin." I said. I bowed. "It was nice seeing you again Nekomata." I said and walked away. As soon as I was around the other side of the bus, I leaned against it taking in a deep breathe. "Are you alright Areku?" I looked over and saw Yachi looking at me concerned. "Yea, just some nerves." I said with a slight laugh. 

"Did you know the coach for Nekoma over there?" She asked. I nodded. "Yeah, I used to play their team when I was at my other school, plus he was friends with my grandfather." I said to her. "Oh wow, that's amazing." She said smiling. "Where are the guys at?" I asked her. "Oh, they're talking over there with the other team." She said. I looked over and saw them all standing in a meshed up circle. I decided to walk over there. 

When I got close to the circle I heard a guy start yelling. "Ohhh!! You have another girl manager! You guys are so lucky!" I saw this guy who kind of looked like Tanaka but with a weird flat blonde mohawk said running over to me. I yelped just as he was about to tackle me. He was grabbed from behind and pulled away. "Don't be throwing yourself like that. I'm sorry about him." I looked up and saw it was this tall jet black spiked hair guy. "He can be a little energetic. To say the least." He apologized for his teammate. "It's fine." I said giving a nervous smile. "Are you alright Areku?" Azumane asked concerned. "Y-yea." I nodded to him. "I'm just surprised to see Coach Nekomata still coaching." I said to the other guy. 

He looked down at me surprised. "Yeah, he's old but a fighter. I'm surprised you know him." He said to me. "My grandfather used to be frenemies with him, and plus I use to see him a lot when I pla-" I cut myself off before I kept blabbing on. I cleared my throat. "When my grandfather would take his team to play against him." I said quickly. He nodded. I breathed out a sigh of relieve that he didn't question it. "I'm Tetsuro Kuroo." He introduced himself, sticking his hand out. I took it in mines. "Nice to meet you, I'm Areku Ukai." I said back. "Oh now that makes sense when you said grandfather, Ukai." He smirked down at me. 

We started walking into the gym and all the guys started practicing. "New manager for Karasuno?" He asked me. I shook my head. "Nah, I'm a coach." I said confidently to him. He looked back at me surprised. "I'm surprised you would be coach." I glared over at him. He put his hands up defensively. "Not that there's anything wrong with that." He added quickly. "I use to be a good player when I played, so my brother asked me to come and help out the team not too long ago." I said to him. "Why don't you still play? Doesn't Karasuno have a girls volleyball team?" He asked. "I-um-I have some reasons for not playing anymore." I said rubbing the back of my head. 

He nodded not adding anything to anymore. _'Thank God, he didn't press on.'_ "Kenma aren't you going to practice too?" He turned his attention to a smaller guy sitting on the bench playing on his game pad. "No, not really." He said in a soft tone. _'I wonder if he's the setter Sugawara was telling me about, really seems like it.'_ "This is our setter Kenma Kozume." He introduced him to me. "Kenma, this is Karasuno's new coach, Areku Ukai." He said back to him. 

He looked over at me, looking me up and down. _'Why do I suddenly feel so nervous with that look?'_ I felt my body stiffen. "A girl as a coach? I'm surprised." He said and turned his attention back to his game. I felt myself double over. _'I guess most people won't understand it.'_ "Um, yeah, It's nice to meet you. You're the setter right?" I asked him. He looked over at me surprised. "Yes, how did you know that?" He asked. "Just a hunch." I smiled at him, "What game are you playing?" I asked him. I took a seat next to him on the bench. "Oh it's called Arms." He slouched down, almost like he was burying his face into his coat. "I know that game, its that cool fighting game with all those quirky looking characters." I said to him. He nodded. "Y-yea, I'm surprised you know that game." He said. I laughed a bit. "Well when you're having to be forced home to rest, playing video games is all you have." I said without thinking. "Forced home to rest?" He asked confused. I felt my entire face fall. _'How did I say that so easily to him?'_ I gave a small nervous laugh. "Forget I said that." I muttered rubbing the back of my head, my face getting flustered. "It's fine." He said. That's when someone blew a whistle to start up the practice match. "Well I should go get ready." He said standing. "Oh, r-right. Good luck in your game." I said to him. "It's just a practice match, and plus shouldn't you be saying that to Karasuno?" He asked. "Even with a practice match, you should give it your all, where's the fun in not trying. Plus I cheer on both teams so they'll give it everything." I said to him. "You're kind of weird." He said. "I'll take that as a compliment." I smiled at him. 

* * *

"So you and Nekoma huh?" My brother said to me as I walked over to him. I nearly tripped over my two feet. "We were just chatting." I said getting defensive. He laughed at me. "Right. You looked really comfortable with him." He continued to tease me. I huffed out to him. "You say that with anyone I talk to." I turned away, folding my arms. "I don't know about that one. You looked more different this time." He nudged my shoulder a bit. "I almost told me about what happened." I said, letting my arms drop. Keishin didn't say anything. "It just came out when I was talking to him." I said turning back to my brother, my face starting to scrunch up. He put his hands on my shoulder. "It's okay to talk about it with others you know, especially if you're comfortable with them. Like your team." He said waving over to the guys as they stretched. I sighed. "I just don't want them to think differently of me. I don't want things to change." I said scared. "They're not the type of guys to be like that with anyone, they'll understand." He said.

"C'mon the game is starting." Keishin said and pulled me along to the benches to sit down. I sat in-between him and Shimizu. Yachi was handling the scoreboard with one of the Nekoma guys. 

They had been playing for about 20 minutes and the score was already at 5-8 with Nekoma in the lead. I felt my leg shaking like crazy and my head killing me. "Yo-you okay over there Areku?" I looked around me and saw Shimizu, my brother, and Mister Takeda staring at me worried. "Y-yeah. Sorry. I was just really into the game." I said quickly. "What about it?" Keishin asked. "Well for starters that setter has one hell of a way of tricking where he's sending the ball. Just his eye gestures alone do it. But I noticed that they're spikers seem to be aiming for the very edge of the court. Almost like it's going to be an out, but it falls just before that. They seem to be hitting it just soft enough for it it slow down in the air." I said without thinking. "It's not really all the guys though, it just seems to be that blonde mohawk guy. Once he's in the front is when more of their points come in." I added. They have a really good Libero-" "Okay, stop for a second." My brother said grabbing my shoulders. I noticed that I seemed to have lost the other two from my constant talking. 

I rubbed the back of my head. "S-sorry. I didn't realize I was saying so much." I said embarrassed. "It's nothing bad Areku, it's incredible really. That you picked up on so much from watching." Takeda said. "What would you suggest the guys to do?" My brother asked. I thought for a minute. "Well judging from the way the team plays. Nekoma has the ball right now. What we would need to start with first is getting the ball back. I think the best option is to bring our players out more. Even though it leaves a lot of room for Nekoma to aim too. But, it would put us at an advantage. They wouldn't be able to do that crazy serving technique again." I said. "Takeda call a timeout." I looked up surprised. "Wha-" But he cut me off. "I know you Areku, you know how to switch this around for us. So won't you please help us out." He said with a smile. My eyes widen and I looked over at Shimizu and she gave me a smile to agree with my brother. 

The whistle was blown and our team made it's way over to us. They were all breathing heavily and looking a little dejected. I took a deep breath. _'I got this!'_


	5. Bring Back The Game

Chapter Five *Bring Back The Game*

* * *

"What is it coach?" They all turned their attention to my brother. "Oh no, not me." He said crossing his arms. They all looked confused. I stepped forward. "I have an idea for you guys." I said giving them a smile. They all stayed attentive, not breaking their gaze away. _'Wow, this is intense.'_ I took a breathed. "I've noticed a few things while I was watching the other team. I don't know if you guys picked up on it. But it seems like their trying their hardest to get you to second guess the shots they're taking." I started. "On top of their setter acting as a sort of decoy, but the way they're hitting the ball they're aiming as if it'll fall out of the court." I continued. "Yeah, I've noticed it a bit, but it's so hard to decide if it's an out or worth going for." Sawamura said with a pained look on his face. "Yeah, which is way I've decided. Just for it. Even if it looks like it'll go out, unless you're 100% sure. Go for it." I said. They all looked surprised. "I want you guys to space yourselves out a bit more. It might seem like you're giving the team an advantage. But I have a solution." I said in a matter-of-fact tone. "The four of your on the corners, stand about 3 feet from the back line and 2 feet from the side, and the two in the middle, stand a couple of feet in front of those on the corners. It'll give you guys more protection, and this way if the ball goes somewhere. You'll be prepared."

I noticed the look on Ennoshita's face as I finished up, he had a smile and I could tell he was proud of what was happening. "Oh I get what you mean." Hinata said. His eyes were sparkling. "You want us to be like in a triangle formation. This way two people will be able to protect the guy in the front and if it they receive it, they'll be able to catch it if it goes falling." I looked over at him. _'Why did he make it sound so much better than me?'_ "Exactly! Cut any way for them to be able to score another point." I said smiling. "Right!" They all said. "Okay, get back in their and stack it up." I said to them. The whistle sounded and they all returned back to the court. 

"Areku." I looked over and saw my brother. "I knew you were still there." He said. I stared back at him. "I have no idea what you mean." I said giving him a sly smile. We took our seats back on the bench. I watched intently as the game started back up again. They all got into position. Tsukishima and Kageyama stood at the corners in the front with Hinata in the middle. Then Azumane, Sawamura, and Noya took their positions behind them. _'This has to work. I know it will.'_

The server on Nekoma's team was getting ready to send it over. I have a feeling he's going to try and jump float it; they'll probably try and go for their little trick. As he went to serve it I noticed a change in his angle. He swung it and it went soaring over the net towards the place in back of Sawamura. _'He's trying to shoot it overhead! C'mon guys, go for it. It's a fake out.'_ Just as it was going to pass over, Sawamura jumped up and hit it straight up. "Cover, sorry guy!" Sawamura yelled. Kageyama set it up and Hinata did his amazing jump and slammed it down onto their court. 

They all stood frozen, it all went by so fast. "YEAHHH!" All the guys started cheering. I sat there eyes wide. _'It really worked.'_ It felt like I was in shock. They I felt a nudge at my shoulder and looked over at Shimizu, she gave me an approving smile. Then I looked over at my brother and Takeda and they gave me thumbs up. I looked back out at the court and saw that Kenma was staring back over at me. He had a puzzled look on his face, like he was trying to figure something out. _'There's that nervous feeling again.'_

"So, what do you think now after that?" My brother asked me. "What do you mean?" I asked. "Will you be a coach?" He asked looking at me. Before I was so unsure and too scared but now it feels so much more different. I gave me a smile. "Yeah. I will." I said. "Hell yeah!" He pumped his fist in the air, causing Shimizu and I to laugh. I looked back over to where Kenma was but he was turned back away talking to Kuroo. 

* * *

The game continued on and Karasuno seemed to be going better, we were able to overtake Nekoma with the score being 19-15. The only thing I'm worried about is their tall blocker they have on their team. Although he's a great blocker, he doesn't seem all that experienced with the entire game. Maybe a recently new player? "Hey Keishin, who's that tall blocker on Nekoma team?" I asked him. "That's Lev Haiba, he's a first year." He said. "Oh, so he is new to the team." I said nodding. "I figured he might be new, his blocking is amazing, although other things need to be worked on." I continued. My brother chuckled. "You're not going to leave us and try and train up the enemy are you?" He teased. I laughed. "Of course not, although, imagine all they could progress on." I said thoughtfully. 

The whistle went off signaling another point, another for Nekoma. "They're really trying to claw their way back up." I said. "Yeah, this is going to be a long game." My brother sighed. I giggled. "The rivalry will continue." He said. 

Watching the game go on it really brought back some memories when I first starting playing volleyball. The rush of getting into the game, the feeling of scoring a point, blocking a spiker attack. It made me think back to this morning when my mom and I were going through all my old stuff. It all seemed to be really hitting so hard, maybe it was because I'm actually seeing the game after all this time? Or maybe from everyone talking about going back? I just had such an overwhelming feeling. 

"Are you crying?" I flinched a bit. I looked over to see my brother having a worried look on his face. I didn't even realize it, but I had a few tears rolling down my face. I quickly wiped them away. Then gave a nervous laugh, "I was just thinking of this morning with mom." I said nervously. "When I was looking for my suit." I added. "Just don't really see you cry, are you sure you're alright?" He asked again. I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." I said. That's when I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked over to see Shimizu giving me a worried looked too. I looked back and forth between her and my brother. "I promise guys, I'm fine." I said giving them both a smile. They both nodded and seem to drop the subject after that.

"Areku?" I looked over at Shimizu. I looked over at her confused. "We're here for you." She said suddenly. I looked at her shocked, not knowing what to say. "I don't know what's happened to you, but us as a team, are here for you." She said finally, then turned her attention back to the game. It was a surprise to hear her say all this, I haven't really had many conversations with her. That's when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. "Oh, I'll be right back." I said pulling my phone out, and walking out of the gym. 

"Hello?" I answered. "Hello, Miss Ukai?" I heard over the phone. "Oh yes? This is her." I said. "Hell Areku, it's your doctor, I wanted to ask if it'd be possible for you to come in for your check up a little bit more earlier this month?" He asked. "Oh sure, that's fine. When were you thinking?" I asked him. "How about next week, around this time?" He asked. I looked at the watch on my arm. 6:04. "Sure thing doc. Why did it have to be moved closer?" I asked him quickly. He gave a slight chuckle. "Relax, there's nothing wrong, I'm just going to be heading on a vacation and wanted to make sure I saw you before that." He explained. I breathed out a sigh of relieve. "Okay, thank you doctor." I said. "Have a good rest of your evening." He said. "You too." I hung up and phone and held it close to my chest. _'I thought for a second it might've been.. I'm just glad it's nothing.'_

* * *

I walked back into the gym and saw that the first set was finished, and we were able to take it. They were all breathing heavily but all looked really happy. Shimizu was passing out some water bottles while my brother talked to them. I stood at the edge of the guys and listened in to my brother. "Just keep doing what you're doing and we'll take this second set too." Then his eyes landed on me. "Everything okay Areku?" He asked. "Yeah, just a phone call." I said rubbing the back of my head. "Do you have anything to add Areku?" My brother asked, and all the guys looked over at me. "If anything just look out for the blockers especially Kuroo, try and send some fast far attacks to Haiba. He doesn't seem to in control of his surroundings and doesn't really know how to receive a ball." I said to them. They all nodded. Then Tanaka grabbed me, putting me into a headlock and nudging my head. "Look at you, giving us advice like a real coach. So proud of you!" He said, it was almost like he was about to start crying. "Ahh, Tanaka. Let go." I groaned against him. Sawamura grabbed him off me. I rubbed the top of my head. "Are you al-alright Areku?" Azumane asked. "Yeah, just Tanaka has one hell of a grip." I said. 

We all put our hands into a middle. "Karasuno, fight!" Then they all went back out onto the court to start up the second set. 

The other team served up the ball first, "Do you think we'll see them at the training camp?" I asked looking over at Takeda. "I think so, the Nekoma coach normally is the one to organize these." He said. "I think it'll most likely be the teams we always see there." Keishin said. "Which ones are those?" I asked. "Nekoma, Fukurodani Academy, Shinzen High, Ubugawa High, and Nekoma High." "Those are some pretty good schools." I said. "Yeah, they're players are really good too. I'm sure you'll like it." My brother said smiling. "I think I will too." I agreed. "Did you have practice training camps when you use to play?" Takeda asked. "No, we went really invited to any of them, if there was any." I said.

"Which school did you come from?" Takeda asked. "Reitaku High." I told him. "Oh, I've heard of them. They have a really good team." He commented on. I looked down sadly. "Yeah, they do." I mumbled. "Hey, but if we ever take them on, they're power through them." My brother said trying to cheer me up. I sighed, and then gave a small shallow smile. 

It's not that I don't appreciate my brother for trying to make me feel better, I know he doesn't really know how I feel. I also don't really tell him how I feel about it. Of course I want to be able to beat my old team, get a sort of closure from that. But it's not that I don't want my team now to go against them, I just want to be apart of taking them down. I don't want to be so scared and actually face them after everything. But I just don't think I'll ever be brave enough to get back onto the court with them again. _'I just don't think I can actually pull it off.'_

* * *

The whistle sounded that the second set was finished, this time the win went to Nekoma. "Oooh, looks like we're going into the finally set." I teased the guys. The second set score was 25-23. They almost made it back up. "You guys did a good keeping pace with them. But this set you'll take it home. Just like how you all said, even though it's a practice match. A match is still a match." I said to them. "I think the best thing to do for this set is to keep more in the back of the court. The three in the back, stay closer to the back especially when that power house server goes up to serve. Keep the two outer guys in the front closer to the net, just in case if they try to trick you into thinking it'll be a long shot but it's curves." I explained to them. All they're eyes were trained and listening attentive to what I have to say. 

I almost started feeling a little embarrassed. I could feel my cheeks starting to turn a bit red. "Th-that's all I got for you guys. So bring it home." I finished, looking away nervously. "Anything you want to add Keishin?" I asked my brother. He gave me a look. "Umm, no. I think you had it covered. Just listen to what Areku said, and do your best." He said. 

They went back to the court and started up for the last set and we sat back onto the bench. "You really took control this time." My brother said. He was still holding a shocked look on his face. "Ye-yeah. Sorry about that. I just couldn't stop talking." I said flustered. "It's a good surprised, I'm glad to see you taking control and wanting to be more involved. Just don't be taking my job." He said, giving me a nudgy. I pushed him off. "Like I'd do that to you." I said laughing. 

* * *

The set finished up pretty quickly and, well, Nekoma won. It was close. 26-24. But this will be good, at least, it means they have more to improve on. We traded the teams to give our advice and input for them. Nekoma came over and stood around in a half circle. I looked over and stare at Kenma. He didn't seem like he was really listening and wanted to be anywhere but here. He looked up and met my eyes, I turned away quickly. My face turning red from embarrassment. _'I hope he doesn't think I'm weird for staring, I hope he didn't think I was staring.'_

"You guys are an incredible team with a strong sense of winning. You held your own really well and made it on top of this." My brother started, he continued to talk on to them and they all listen to him. "Anything you wanted to add Areku?" He asked. They all turned to look at me. _'Wow, they're so much more intimidated them talking to my team.'_ "I don't have too much to say, just that I think you could work better on a strong sense of defense. You guys have a lot of power and a good blocking system. But as for receiving the ball. I noticed a few don't really seem comfortable going to the ball, that or they just don't want too." I looked over at Kenma, but quickly carried on. "I would say train better in following the ball, maybe do some more defensive practice or something." I said.

I felt my brother hit me in the back of the head. "What did I tell you about helping the other team?" He said angrily. "Hey, that hurts!" I said with tears in my eyes. "And plus, what's the fun of going against a team if they don't work on what's the problem. I want them to get stronger so when we go against them again. It'll be just like today. It would be kind of boring to be the only one to improve." I yelled back at him. We both stood there glaring at each other.

"Hey, calm down you too." Takeda came in-between us. I turned away crossing my eyes, a scowl on my face. "Well I would like to say thank you for the advice. We'll think about it." Kuroo said giving me a sly smile. "You're not like most coaches." He said looking at me. "But it's not in a bad way." He finished.

They made their way back to their coaches and our team came back to us, they looked slightly defeated and sad about the outcome of the match. "You guys fought really hard out there, but don't feel so defeated. Just think of it that you'll be better next time. When we see Nekoma again, they'll see a different side of you guys." I said to them. They looked up. I smiled at them all. "I don't look at a losing as a bad thing, yea it really sucks to lose, but that only means it can go up from here. We'll work harder after today. Work on what didn't work today and be a better version of us tomorrow." I finished. "You know what, Areku is right!" Hinata said pumping his fist in the air. "We'll beat them next time!" He said. Then after that, they all started to pick themselves up and say their own little things to agree with my statement. 

* * *

We started packing up the bus when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned and saw it was Kenma there. "I think I had the wrong assumption about you." He said suddenly. I must have had a shocked look on my face, because he continued on. "I thought you weren't a real coach, that you were only here for a different kind of reason. But I was wrong. With what you and your brother said to each other and how you carried yourself when you gave your team advice. You're really good." He said. My mouth was slight opened and I didn't know what to say. "Well, I will say I was expecting that from you." I said giving a small laugh. "You're not what I expected either." I said to him.

"You don't really care from volleyball that much, at least that's the vibe you gave off, but you put a lot of effort to trick your opponent into thinking where you'll send the ball." I started. "That shouldn't seem like someone who doesn't care." I finished. It was his turn to look away a little flushed. I giggled at that. _'He was kind of adorable.'_

"It was really nice to meet you. I was wondering though, do you have a gamepad like mine?" He asked. "Oh yea, I have one at home." I said confused. He took out a piece of paper and handed it to me. "M-maybe we could play together sometime." He said, and then turned away before I could say anything. I opened up the paper and saw it was a number, I assumed his. _'Did he just give me his number?'_

"Areku, are you okay? Your face is so red." Hinata came over concerned. I covered my face. "Y-yea, I-I'm fine." I said and rushed away from him. "Are you sure?" He called out to me. _'Oh God, my brother is going to hear. I don't need his teasing right now.'_ I gave Hinata a thumbs up without turning back around. 


	6. Preparing Something Special

Chapter Six *Preparing Something Special*

* * *

I was sitting at my desk at phone, tapping a pencil against the desk and staring at the paper in front of me. It didn't have to be completely perfect, but I wanted to make sure it was as smooth as possible. _'Maybe I should write it a different way.'_ I sighed frustrated. That's when my phone pinged from my night stand. I reached over and looked at the screen. Kenma. _'Oh yeah, I forgot I texted him to tell him my number.'_

'Okay, I'll add your number to my phone.' He had written back. 'Alrighty, sounds good!' I had wrote back, I hovered over the send button. _'Man, this looks so boring, how do I even keep a conversation going?'_ 'Okay, did you want me to send you my gamer code so we could be friends?' I sent instead. I don't understand why I keep getting so flustered like this, it's not like we're talking about anything special. He wrote back almost instantly. 'Sure.' 

I reached into my draw and pulled out my game pad, turning it on. As I waited for it to load up I looked over at the paper again. There was a jumble of different hand signals and positions on the court. It's hard to already predict where some opponents would be on the other side of the field, but having a general idea isn't too bad. I had made these a few years ago when I placed to make it easier to do combos or go for a quick attack. But now I can't even find the original one I had, so going over it from memory is hard. I remember all the signals like the back of my hand, but writing them down is that hard part. _'I know I'm missing a few.'_ I groaned as I shank into my seat. 

After my game pad was all powered on, I sent the code to Kenma and waited for him to add me. _'Maybe it would do my head some good to take a mini break.'_ I looked back down at the paper. _'Why is it so much harder to take breaks now?'_

'Did you want to play some Arms for a bit?' Kenma texted back. 'Sure, I need to let my brain chill out XD.' I wrote back. He sent me an invite and we started playing for a bit. God damn he's actually really good. _'He must really spend anytime just playing games.'_ I went to lay on my bed, to get more comfy and so I don't end up hurting my back. _'Oh, it's so on!'_

* * *

We ended up playing for over an hour, let's just say that Kenma doesn't show mercy. 'You suck.' I texted him. He sent back a laughing face, 'You need to practice more, at least your coaching skills aren't that bad.' I rolled my eyes. That's when I heard a knock at my door. "Areku, your brother is here." My mom said through the door. "Okay, I'll be right down." I called back. I sent a mad face back, 'I need to go anyway, my brother's here and I need to finish up some techniques too.' I sent. 'Okay, have a good time.' He texted me. I sent a cutesy face back, 'Thank you, you too.'

I left my phone on my nightstand and went downstairs. My brother was sitting at the kitchen table and my mom was over at the stove watching what was in the oven. "Hey Keishin, what's up?" I asked. I sat across from him. "I came to see how you're doing?" He asked. I gave him a weird look. "I'm fine?" I said in more of a questioning tone. "Mom was worried, you've been locked in your room all day." He continued. "I've been busy." I said vaguely. He shot me a look. "Busy doing what? You don't do anything in your free time." He said. "Okay, that's just mean." I said, and threw a loose table cloth at him. "And I was busy. Since you like to ruin surprises. I was getting something put together for practice on Monday." I said. My brother looked surprised and I could tell my mom was too.

"What kind of surprise?" He asked. "I was working on a kind of strategy for when we go against another team." "What did you have in mind?" He asked. "It's something I did back a few years ago, I'm trying to remember all the signals and what everything was meant for." I explained. "I think it can be really useful, plus there's a fall back incase it doesn't work." I added. My brother nodded. "You've really been thinking this through." He said. "I'm almost done with it too, I want to finish it today so I don't have to rush through it tomorrow." I went on. 

"I didn't realize how late it gotten, I ended up getting distracted for like an hour." I laughed. "I'm surprised you got distracted, normally you like getting things done." Keishin said raising an eye brow. _'Oh god, he's got that look on his face. I can't tell him I was playing with Kenma.'_

"My brain needed a rest too, if I kept going on it wouldn't have went the way I wanted it too." I said. He shrugged. "I guess." He clearly didn't believe him. _'It's like half true.'_ "Well since you're already here, why don't you stay for dinner." Mom said to my brother. "Are you sure ma, I don't want to impose." He said rubbing the back of his head. "Nonsense, you're my son, help Areku set the table." She said, waving him away. 

While mom finished up cooking over at the stove, Keishin and I set up the table, getting the plates, forks, and knifes all set. "Mom, what do you want to drink tonight?" I asked her, going over to the fridge and opening the door. "I'll just have a water." She said. "What about you Keishin?" I asked. He came over and peered over my shoulder, "Got any soda?" He asked. "We have milk." I said to him. "I'll take water too." He said disappointed walking over to the cabinets and grabbing three glasses. 

I pulled out the gallon of water we had to fill up the cups, "Areku, could you grab the butter out of the fridge too?" My mom asked. I reopened it and pulled out the butter, handing it to her. "Thank you." She said giving me a smile. My mom pulled out the buns from the toaster oven on the side of the counter. Then she started cutting the bread in-between and buttering them. She placed them all in a little basket and in the middle of all the plates on the table. I walked over to the stove and turned off the burners for the carrots and potatoes she had boiling. 

I looked under the sink and pulled out the strainer, and then dumped the carrots and potatoes into it together. "Aww Areku, why are you going to mix them like that?" Keishin whined. I rolled my eyes. "It's not going to taste any different, and plus this is faster." I said back to him. He pouted, folding his arms over his chest. Our mom started laughing, "You two still act like when you were children." She said. We both huffed in disagreement. I grabbed a big glass bowl and poured the carrots and potatoes into it and then placed it on the table. "Mom do you think the rice is all done now?" I asked her going over to the rice maker. "Give it a few more minutes." She said.

I took a seat next to my brother at the table, "So do you think what you have planned will really work?" He asked in a more serious tone. "Yeah, it may take some getting use too, it's not perfect, but it really helped me back when I played." I said. That's when I heard him snicker and looked over to see him making a weird face. "What?" I asked confused. "Nothing, just it's been so long since I've seen that sparkle in your eye when you got into the game, even though you're not playing, it's still there." He said. I looked away flustered. "Sh-shut up." I stuttered, causing him and our mom to laugh.

* * *

After we finished eating, Keishin and I cleaned up while mom went to rest up a bit. Since she did all the cooking we'll help her out. I was doing the dishes while Keishin packed up all the extra food putting it into the fridge. "You're not going to take any home?" I asked him. "Nah, I have some stuff at home, and plus you could take some to school with you on Monday." He added. 

I put the last plate into the strainer and wiped my hands with a dish towel. "I should probably head out for the night now, before it gets to dark." Keishin said folding his arms. "Oh yeah, but be safe on your way home." I said and gave him a quick hug bye. "I will, I'm going to say bye to mom and head out." He said. "Okay, good night bro." I said. He walked down the hall to moms room and I headed back to my room to finish up with my signals. 

I walked into my room and grabbed my phone off my nightstand, I noticed I had a notification on my phone. It was from Kenma. 'Thank you :).' He had texted back. I felt my ears starting to get hot and my face flush a bit. _'It's already too late to text him back.'_ I sighed and plugged my phone in.

I turned back and took a seat at my desk, I pulled out another piece of paper and started to rewritten the signals down again, I wanted to test out every thing possible, then come to a good conclusion. "Looks like I won't get much sleep tonight." I said to myself with a little laugh.

* * *

I yawned as I continued on the track to school, I rubbed my eyes to try and get them to be more awake. It's funny that working on the signals was what kept me up, I was able to finish up what I thought was a good starting point and went to bed on Saturday. But I ended up spending all of yesterday, day and night, playing a bunch of games with Kenma. It honestly didn't even feel like time was passing at all. Until we saw that it was already almost one in the morning. After that we both agreed to head to bed. 

'I'm so tired :(.' I sent to Kenma as I continued on my walk to school. I felt like I looked like a zombie as I walked along the trail. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and pulled it out. 'I am too, I wish I could crawl back into bed.' He wrote back. Another yawn escaped my mouth. 'Same, this really sucks.' I texted back. 

"Good morning Areku!" I looked behind me and saw Sugawara jogging up to walk with me. "Good morning." I said trying to give him a smile, but I think it looked more like a grimace. "You don't look so good, didn't sleep well last night?" He asked. "Yeah. I didn't realize how late it had gotten when I went to bed." I said, drooping my head. Suga snickered a bit. I glared at him. "I'm sorry for laughing, it's just a little funny." He said. 

My phone vibrated again. I pulled it out, "Who you texting?" Suga said in a teasing tone and looking over my shoulder. My cheeks got red for a minute, "N-no one." I said quickly. I looked at my phone. 'Kuroo's also dragging me to practice today too, so I can't even go home after school.' 'I understand that, I have to go to practice too.' I wrote back with a crying face. "You and Kenma seem to be getting close." Suga teased. I felt my face get hot instantly. "Wh-what're you talk-lking ab-about? We're just causally texting." I said trying not to stutter. 

Suga just gave me a wink and we continued on our way to school. I was just glad he stopped bringing it up. "Are you still going to come to practice being tired?" He asked. "Yeah, I have something to tell you guys there too." I told him. "Oh really?" He asked nervously. I laughed a bit. "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. I think it's going to be a really big help." I reassured him. 

* * *

Once we made it to school, Suga and I went our separate ways. I saw Kageyama and Hinata walking together towards the first year classrooms. "Hey guys." I said waving over to them. "Good morning Areku!" Hinata said happily. "Why do you look like death?" Kageyama asked bluntly. Hinata's face dropped. "You can't just say things like that to someone." He grumbled at Kageyama. I chuckled, "It's alright, I feel like death too." I said jokingly. "What's wrong?" Hinata asked worried. "Nothing, I'm just really tired. I didn't sleep well last night." I said

We all started walking towards where our class rooms. "Did you guys have a good weekend?" I asked them. "Yea, it was alright." Kageyama said vaguely. "It's was good, I practiced some more, and had my sister help me out." Hinata said pumped. "Oh, I didn't know you had a sister." I said. "Yeah, she's younger, still in elementary school." He said. "That's adorable." I laughed. "What about you Kageyama?" I asked. "Um. yea, I have an older sister." He answered. "Oh, that's good." I said happily. 

We made it their classroom and I waved bye to them. I walked over to where my classes are, and saw Tanaka and Noya standing outside of a room, peeking in. _'What are these two up too?'_ I walked over to them confused. "Um. Guys." I said. They both jumped, screaming, as they fell over. They looked up and saw me standing over them confused and concerned. "Oh my goodness!" Noya yelled. "Yeah, you scared the hell out of us Areku!" Tanaka said with tears in his eyes. 

That's when Kiyoko came out of the room they were peeking into, looking just as confused. I shook my head. _'That makes sense.'_ "What happened out here?" She asked. "Nothing, these two are just... I'm not sure what to describe it." I said rubbing the back of my head. "It's fine. I'm use to it by now." She said and went back into the room. They both jumped up, squealing. "Kiyoko is so amazing!" Tanaka said. Noya shook his head aggressively. "Yes! Her voice is like what flowers should sound like." Noya agreed. 

I shook my head disappointed. "Just get to class on time." I said to them and went along down the hallway towards my classroom. Once I made it I walked in and basically fell onto my desk. I let my head lay down and covered my head. _'The day hasn't even started yet and it's already too long.'_ I sighed. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and saw a text from Kenma. 'I hope you have a good day at work, ttyl.' He wrote. I smiled. 'Thank you, have a good day too :).' 

I put my phone away and waited for the teacher to come in to take attendance and to start up the first period. 


End file.
